Owner of Sammy's Trattoria acquires liquor license for second venture, slated to open in September

Lindsay VanAsdalan

A sample menu from Sammy's Enoteca.

A sample menu from Sammy's Enoteca.

(Lindsay VanAsdalan)

Lindsay VanAsdalan

The owner of Sammy's Trattoria (1200 N. Charles St., [410] 837-9999, sammystrattoria.com), City Paper's 2013 winner for Best Italian Restaurant, is set to open a new Italian restaurant in Fells Point. Last night, owner Samuel Curreri was granted a liquor license for Sammy's Enoteca, at 621-625 S. Broadway in the space adjacent to the Ding How restaurant. Curreri hopes to open by September, with a starting schedule of dinner Monday-Sunday and lunch Thursday-Sunday.

In addition to Sammy's Trattoria, Curreri has spent 15 years at Little Italy staple Chiapparelli's, and he brings plenty of family experience—he currently works with his wife and cousins, who will be joining him in the new project. The menu will focus on pastas, fresh seafood, and healthy salads and will represent several areas of Italy, including Sicily and Abruzzi, where Curreri's family is from, with dishes including squid-ink pasta and Chilean sea bass.

Additionally, Curreri says he plans to offer house-made pastas and sauces available for purchase to take home.

Once the space is built out, it will seat 131, he says.

The word Enoteca derives from the Greek word meaning "wine repository," and it refers to a type of local or regional wine shop originating in Italy. Sammy's Enoteca has an off-premise license, which means the restaurant can sell wines that are unique to Baltimore and unable to be sold in wine shops.

The Baltimore Business Journal first reported in January that Sammy's Enoteca was supposed to have its hearing before the Board of Liquor License Commissioners on Jan. 8, but the case wasn't called. At that time Curreri was aiming to open Sammy's Enoteca by May or June.